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Days 55-56: A lot of travellers transit through Amman, Jordan quickly. For us it was a great place to recharge the batteries and enjoy some western comforts. We visited Amman’s Mecca Mall, saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix with an appreciative Jordanian cinema audience, ate some delicious meals at expat-oriented restaurants and had one of the best cheap felafel meals in our middle east travels so far.

It was also a short day trip to the Dead Sea. Swimming there was a very strange experience. All my life I’ve imagined what floating in the Dead Sea might be like. Wading into the body of water, everything felt “normal” until we got to about waist deep, when we began to notice that something didn’t feel quite right. One more step into the deep and then - quite suddenly - our legs floated up towards the surface from underneath us as if they had minds of their own.

We swam at Amman Beach “Number One”, a newish compound to the south of the Dead Sea’s megahotel complexes with some chlorinated water swimming pools to cool off in after swimming in the very warmish Dead Sea. Here there were the obligatory range of beauty products available featuring minerals from the Dead Sea. Personally, I am dubious about the health benefits offered by a body of water which operates as an ancient terminating drain, 400 metres below sea level, fed by the Jordan River in which all manner of dissolved solids have accumulated over time as the water evaporates away in the harsh heat. Half an hour in was enough for me, then it was time for a good shower.